Film-feeding apparatus



J. G. JONES. FILM FEEDING APPARATUS; APPLICATION FILED raw/'24. 191s.

Patented Oct. 10, 1922;.

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FILM FEEDING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED MAY 24, 1918.

1,431,893, Patented Oct. 10, 1922.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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Patented Oct. 10, 1922.

UNITED STATES JOHN G. JONES, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY,

PATENT OFFICE;

OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

FILM-FEEDING- APPARATUS.

Application filed may 24, 1918. Serial No. 236,397.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OHN G. J ONES, a citizen of the United States of America, resid-- is a full, clear, and exact specification.

This invention pertains to apparatus for handling sensitive photographic material, and more particularly to apparatus for mova long band of light sensitive material intermittently past a station where printing takes place.

The present specification refers to a printing machine which is fully described and claimed in my Patent 1,326,062 granted Dec. 23, 1919.

The general objectof this invention is to provide a satisfactory machine which will move delicate sensitive photographic mate rial past a printing station with an intermittent motion, such motion causing the sen sitive material to pause momentarily for the printing operation and then to advance the proper distance. Another objectof my invention is to provide a machine in which the sensitive material will be moved with a minimum contact therewith, so that abrasion of the sensitive material will be prevented; in which the intermittent movement will be of substantially uniform speed so that the strain due to sudden movement of the sensitive material will be avoided; in which the distance between the pauses in the intermittent movement will be accurately spaced, and in which the several parts are all driven properly in timed relation. Further objects will hereinafter appear.

The embodiment of my invention consists of a machine for mdving unexposed motion picture films past a station where numbers are printed on the margin, the film being generally unperforated, although perforated film can be used in my machine, but it will be understood that other strip material than cine film might be moved by my machine.

In the accompanying drawings in which similar reference numerals indicate the same parts:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of an apparatus embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the machine;

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4: is a section through one of the shafts, showing the cam disk in elevation;

Fig. 5 is an elevation partly broken away of the rotating element carrying the lever which causes the intermittent motion, the roller being positioned in the cam, as indicated in dotted lines at 5 in Fig. t;

Fig. 6 show-s the relation between the lever and a gear wheel when the roller is p0- sitioned in the cam slot, as indicated in dotted lines at 6, Fig. 4;

Fig.4 7 is an elevation of the mechanism which causes the intermittent movements of the printing machine.

My invention is particularly adapted for use with printing machines as described in my patent cited above, and I have, therefore, illustrated it as having such a printer, but it is understood that any machine which performs an operation on the film in a short time interval may be used. In Figs. 1 and 2 I show in unshaded fine lines the printing apparatus through which the film is drawn by my machine.

In this embodiment of my invention a frame 1 carries a supply reel of stock 2. there being an arm 3 pressed by spring 4 against the stock holding it in proper alignment. The film band 7 is drawn over roller 8 through the printing machine A. over roller 9, around an intermittently driven drum 10, past roller 11, finally being wound upon a frictionally driven reel 12 which has a plate 13 against which the film is wound. It will be noted that the rollers 8, 9 and 11. and the drum 10 are all cut away at 14 so that only a small portion or flange 15 of the roller will come in contact with the edges of the film band 7.

The drum 10 is mounted on a shaft 16, being keyed thereto by a pin 17 This shaft 16 has for its bearing 18 a part of the main frame 1, and is intermittently driven as follows: upon a shaft- 19 mounted in bearing 20 of frame 1 there is mounted a member 21 composed of two pulley wheels 22 and 22'. Power is applied to pulley 22' from any convenient source of power. and the member 22 is caused to rotate thereby. Upon the rotary member 22 there is mounted a lever 23, pivoted thereto at 24:, having on one arm 25 of the lever an extension roller 26 adapted to revolve about pivot 27, and the other arm 28 consisting of a segmental gear 29. The teeth29 mesh with gear '30, which rotates with shaft 16 being attached thereto by a key 31. It will be seen that gear 30, shaft 16 and rollerlO form, when assembled, a rigid unit. On the end of bearing 18 there is anoutwardly flared end 32 to which a cam plate 33 is fastened by bolts 34. This plate has a slot or path 35 cutin its face 36, the slot having a portion 37 eccentric to the axis of the shaft 19. The roller 26 of lever arm 23 is adapted to travel in this path 35, which is desi ned so that during a small portion of eac revolution, the roller will travel away from the axis of rotation in the eccentric .portion 37 of'cam slot 35 causing arm 28 to revolve against the direction of rotation at the same speed at which shaft 19 revolves, this causing a momentary pause in the movement of gear 30. This movement in the cam illustrated takes place between the positions shown in dotted lines at 5 and 6, Fig. 4. There is a corresponding acceleration in the speed of gear 30 upon the return of the roller 26 to its normal path 35 concentric with shaft 19, after which the lever 23 not turning on its pivot 24 will in effect key gear 30 to the rotating member 22 so that they will rotate with the same uniform speed. The duration of the pause and the rate of acceleration of speed are a matter of design, depending on the particular shape of the slot, and would be designed to meet the requirements of practlce. Of course, if desirable, a cam could be designed which would cause a pause in the movement of gear 30, as int-he present arrangement, but with a constant speed from the end to the beginning of the pause, however, the present design has been found practical in use. It will thus be seen that the rotating member or gear 30 revolves shaft 16 intermittently and causes drum 10 to transmit this movement to the film band 7.

To wind up the film and insure proper contact with the drum 10, the wind-up core 12 with backing disk 13 are mounted on a shaft 38 which has a split end 39 enabling the cores to be frictionally held on the shaft. so that the operator can remove the filled cores quickly and easily and put new ones 1n place. Shaft 38 is mounted in a bearing 39 upon an arm 40 extending up from the frame base 1. Upon the inner end of shaft 38 there is a pulley 41 attached thereto by key 42 and driven by a belt 43 which passes around the groove 44 of rotating member or pulley 22. The relative sizes of the pulleys 22 and 41 are such that the core 12 will always tend to rotate faster than the film strip 7 can be wound thereon, causing the film strip at all times to exert a pull, thereby keeping close contact with the drum 10 and causing the intermittently movingdrum 1() to have sufficient frictional contact to move the film band 7 properly. The

belt 43 is adjusted so that it will drive pulley 41 through friction, slipping more when the film roll wound upon core 12 is large and less when the roll is small. i

The printing machine'shown in my companion application is operated through an arm 50 which has a bifurcated end 51 Ilding about a shaft 52, there being a dog 53 mounted on the rod end 5lwh1ch is drawn into contact with a cam disk 54 by .a strong spring 55, all as described in my above mentioned application. In this machine the cam disk 54 is constantly operated by means of a shaft 52 mounted in bearings 56, there being a bevel gear 57 on one end, meshlng with bevel gear 58 keyed to shaft 19. As before described, shaft 19 is constantly rotated by power applied to pulley 22'.

The operation of my machine is as follows:

Pulley 22' is constantly driven and rotates shaft 19 to which it is keyed. .Rotating member 22being integral with pulley 22 moves with the same speed as pulley 22 and imparts an intermittent movement to gear 30 through the lever 23 which has one arm provided with roller 26 engaging the cam slot 35 and the other arm with teeth meshing withthe teeth of 'gear 30. The cam, by means of roller 26, varies the relation between the two rotating elements, 22 and 30, thereby transmitting to shaft 16 an intermittent movement, which, with the cam as illustrated consists in a steady movement, a short aus'e, a short accelerated movement an then the steady movement, equal to thespeed of the driven shaft 19. m This intermittent movement is transmitted to the film band 7 by means of drum 10, which has sufiicient frictional engagement with the film to 'move it the definite distances desired. The wind-up core is constantly driven from pulley 22 by the belt 43, which has sufficient frictional contact therewith to drive it satisfactorily, but will slip if the film band is taut. he printing machine is adjusted so that the cam 54 causes the machine to print just as the movement of the film ceases, the

mechanism of the printing machine and the film moving drum 10 operating in timed relation, so that the film is drawn from the stock roll 2 over roller 8 through the machine where it pauses to receive the desired designations, and passes on intermittently over roller 9, driving drum 10 and roller 11, being finally wound upon drum 12. With myniachine the film may be perforated or not as convenient, since the driving drum is operated through frictional contact. While my apparatus is especially designed for use with the printing machine described in my companion application, any other suitable machine may be used which can function in a short period of time without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

It is especially desirable that the pull on ciently great to jerk or injure the band,

the amount of acceleration being determined by the shape of the cam, which is designed to avoid a harmful jerk.

Having thus described my invention what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is: e

l. A source of supply and a take-up means for cine film, means to feed a band from the source to the take-up means, and means to operate the feeding means intermittently comprising two coaxial rotary members, one driving the other, the mechanical connection between the members being such that they have the same period of rotation but have a relatively oscillatory movement, the driven member driving the feedmeans synchronously with its own motion.

2. A source of supply and a take-up means for cine film, a roller adapted to engage and feed a film from the source to the take-up means, a rotary member coaxial with the roller and driven at a uniform speed, and a second rotary member rigid with the roller and coaxial with the roller and with the first rotary *member,'and so connected to the first rotary member that it will be driven thereby at the same period of rota: tion, but with a motion relatively oscillatory thereto.

3. In apparatus of the class described, a roller adapted to engage frictionally a band of cine film, uniformly rotating means coaxial with the roller and so connected to the roller that it positively drives the roller intermittently with a short dwell and a relatively long movement, a take-up roller for the band, and a frictional drive between the rotating means and the take-up roller whereby the latter exerts a continuous tension on the band, to insure proper contact between the film and the roller.

4. A source of supply for cine film, a roller adapted to engage the band frictionally, a rotating means driven at a uniform speed and so connected to the roller that it rotates it positively at its own period of rotation but with an intermittent motion, a take-up roller for the film and a frictional drive between the rotating member and the take-up roller whereby the latter exerts a continuous tension on the film, and means for printing on the film, a positive connec tion between the rotary member and the printing means whereby the printing means is actuated in timed relation with the roller, when the latter is at rest.

51 Means for intermittently moving a film band, comprising a rotary wheel in engagement with said film, there being two rotary members, one of them being constantly driven, connections between the rotary mem here by which the constantly driven member will impart an intermittent motion to the other rotary member, the intermittent motion consisting of 'a relatively short dwell or stop and a lon pull, the second rotary member being rigi 1y connected to the wheel.

6. Means for intermittently moving a film strip, comprising two members revolving about a common axis, one of said members .being constantly driven, the other being intermittently driven thereby through a lever pivoted to one member and positively en-, gaging the other, whereby the relation of the rotating elements is varied during a portion of each revolution, and means operated by the intermittently driven member to move a film strip.

7 Means for intermittently moving a film strip, comprising rotating elements, one carrying a lever, the lever having positive c onnection with the other rotating element, and an extension mounted on'the lever, a fixed member having a cam slot, said extension adapted to move in the cam slot, whereby the relation between the rotating elements is changed during each revolution, so that a.

relatively short dwell and a relatively long movement is imparted to the second oi the rotating elements by the first, and means operated by the last mentioned rotating member to move the film.

8. Means for intermittently advancing a film strip comprising two coaxial rotary members, one ofthe rotray members carrying a pivoted lever with an extension at one end and a segmental gear at the other, the other rotary member carrying gear teeth engaged by the segmental gear, a fixed memer having ancam path in which the extension engages, so that uniform rotary motion imparted to one of the rotary members is translated into intermittent rotary motion of the other, the intermittently operated member being connected to a film engaging means, whereby the film is advanced with a relatively short dwell and relatively long movement.

9. Means for intermittently advancing a film strip, comprising two rotary members, mounted on coaxial independent shafts. the first rotary member being constantly driven and carrying a pivoted lever, the second rotary member having gear teeth on its cir-- cumference, one arm of the lever carrying an extending roller, the other arm carrying a segmental gear in engagement with the gear teeth, a fixed member having a cam slot in which the roller engages, whereby the first rota member imparts to the second an intermlttent rotary iotion, so that it has menses oted lever with an extension engaging the slot and a segmental gear engaging the gear wheel, whereby the take up member is caused to exert a continuous tension on the band and insure its frictional engagement with the roller and the roller imparts to the band an intermittent motion comprising a shortdwell and a relatively long slow movement.

Signed at Rochester, New York, this 10th day of May 1918.

JOHN G. JONES. 

